Police plea hearing adjourned

A former police detective charged with murdering his partner whose body was found dumped in woodland has appeared in court today.

Peter Foster, 35, is accused of killing Detective Constable Heather Cooper, 33, at their home in West Street, Haslemere, Surrey.

The body of Miss Cooper, a mother-of-two, was found by police in Blackdown Woods near Lurgashall, West Sussex, in October last year.

A post-mortem examination found she died from a blow to the head and a stab wound to the throat.

Miss Cooper, who worked in the Public Protection Investigation Unit based at Guildford Police Station, was on maternity leave at the time of her death. Her family described her as a "wonderful mother" who "lived life to the full".